Heroes of Olympus - The Blood of Olympus (Fan Fiction)
by Drakon's Den
Summary: Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase are reunited with their friends after a deathly journey through Tartarus. Coach Hedge, Reyna, and Nico are off to deliver the Athena Parthenos and restore peace between the warring Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter. The seven demigods must reach Athens by August 1st, the Feast of Spes, to stop Gaea from awakening and defeating her army of giants.
1. Chapter 1 - Nico

**This story is also on Wattpad - in which I'm am the rightful owner (OF THE FAN FICTION OF COURSE! The plot, characters and everything else all belong to Mr. Rick Riordan). Just thought I'd create a FanFiction account to see what everyone on here thinks of the story. So please review! I'd love to hear some helpful feedback. :)**

 **Hope you all enjoy this!**

 **Chapter 1 - Nico**

The darkness of the woods only seemed to grow colder as with each passing minute, the light from the rising moon above grew brighter. The pounding of footsteps was loud enough to awaken Typhon from reformation in Tartarus as a lone half-blood raced through the trees. A single sword, invisible to the eye for it blended in well with the environment, was held firm within the half-blood's grasp, its black Stygian blade sharp and hungry for the flesh of monsters. The demigod panted and gasped, as he wove through the trees, leaping over fallen stumps, stumbling through bogs, and charging through thick dark foliage in his wild haste to escape.

But what was he trying to escape from? A single howl answered his question. It tore through the woods, piercing the night, its voice inhuman and reeking of evil.

Heaving, the half-blood poured on the speed, his demigod aura giving off such a powerful odor, he was sure he was attracting every monster within a 100 mile radius. The howling behind him seemed to dissipate into the trees, its owner likely falling behind. Whatever had made the beastly sound, its body surely was massive, preventing it from pursuing the half-blood farther into this wretchedly dense woodland. Finally, the demigod came to a small clearing within the shelter of the dark trees. He leaned up against one of the trunks, trying in vain to catch his breath. A dark canopy of branches sheltered over head, giving no light into the clearing below. He should be safe here for a few minutes.

Leaning his head against the trunk, he willed the shadows around him to come forth, drinking in their energy through the dark blade of his Stygian weapon, relinquishing some of his exhaustion into the night air, and replacing it with fresh health. Drawing in a lungful of oxygen, he tried to recall what had just happened.

It was hellhounds. That was it. In his haste to escape his pursuer, he'd forgotten what had attacked them the previous night. An entire pack of them as he remembered, their glowing red eyes maleficent in the dark, claws flashing for his throat. In desperate terror, he'd found himself unwillingly, squeezing his eyes shut and being pulled forth into the depths of shadow travel, his soul bending through time and space. The transportation only lasted about a second. But when he'd re-opened his eyes, the pack was gone, and so were his two companions. The Athena Parthenos was also gone. He'd shadow-traveled to an entirely different area, leaving them on the verge of death.

Burning shame seared his face, his body flushing all the way down to his feet. He'd left his companions alone to the fate of the hellhounds; and somewhere right now, they were probably dead, or at least fighting for their lives. He knew he'd only traveled a couple of miles. These were the same forests he'd been in when the hellhounds attacked. He just had no idea now where his friends were, and he needed to find them now before whatever monster hot on his trail did.

Drawing in another lungful of air, he turned, ready to go, when suddenly, the sound of leaves crackling behind him made him freeze in his tracks. A twig snapped. The half-blood ducked behind the tree, his hand still grasping the handle of his sword. Bushes rustled a few yards to his right. Something was very close. How could he have let it sneak up on him like this? Leaning farther into the shadows, his black clothing disguised him very well, the only thing visible within the filtering light of the rising moon, was his deathly pale face, unmistakable white in the dark of the night.

The bushes parted, and out stepped a small humanoid figure. It didn't seem to carry the aura of a monster. In fact, it looked very well to be another demigod. He was about to leap out, thinking it was one of his companions, but suddenly halted himself. He still didn't trust this newcomer, even if it did look human. He decided to remain hidden, and see what it would do. But his previous hesitation was all it took.

The figure turned suddenly, its gaze pointing in his direction. The half-blood saw the faint silhouette of a long braid whipping around the figure's shoulders, an Imperial Gold sword held firm in its grasp. "Nico?" the figure asked, caution and hesitancy filling its voice.

The half-blood's spirits soared.

"Nico, is that you?"

Nico stepped out of the shadows, the moon exposing his face.

The figure recoiled in surprise.

"Hey Reyna..." Nico said, shame still burning through his clothes. "Long time, no see...?"

The figure stood there for a second, frozen on the spot, then slowly walked forward.

Nico knew what was coming. And he welcomed it. A sharp fist collided with his lower jaw, knocking him off his feet, his sword skittering into the dirt.

The figure stood tall, the light of the moon illuminating her face; beautiful, yet terrifying. "Nico di Angelo, I swear to all the gods, should you ever leave me alone on the field of battle again... especially with that scrounging old goat who carries a baseball bat, I will personally send you to the Fields of Punishment myself."

"I expected that sort of response," Nico sighed, standing up. "I'm sorry, Reyna. I didn't know what happened. I sort of just... shadow-traveled without even meaning to. It was a complete accident. I fully regret it."

Reyna looked appalled. "How can you just... accidentally shadow-travel to another area? Was a small group of hell-hounds too much to handle?" Her voice had turned mocking.

"Ha ha..." Nico growled. "I don't know how, Reyna. I really don't. I just shut my eyes, and the next thing I knew, I was here. Or... I was there." He pointed in the direction he'd come.

Reyna studied him. "You look winded. Were you running hard just now?"

"Yes," Nico muttered. "Something... some beastly thing was chasing me. I don't know what it is. It doesn't sound like any monster I've ever heard."

"Wait... you haven't seen it yet?" Reyna demanded.

"No!" Nico snapped. "I just heard it, and its voice was so loud, I thought a clan of drakons was after me at first!"

As if on cue, the monster bellowed somewhere to the north, its voice shaking the forest to its roots, the ground trembling from the force of its roar. It was much closer than before. Too close...

Reyna and Nico lost their balance for a moment, but regained their composure just as quick.

"We must lead it away from here..." Reyna said. "We mustn't let the Coach get involved. Monster or not, that crazy faun will charge just about anything he sees, even a wood-rat."

"Satyr," Nico corrected.

"Whichever," Reyna growled.

Suddenly, the trees to their right were ripped clear out of the ground, and tossed away as if they were dead twigs. Standing in their wake, was a colossal monster. It stood twelve feet tall, on huge bulky human-like legs, with a ragged grey loincloth tied around its middle. It's upper half though, was the body of a wolf. Huge hairy arms (strangely also humanoid) jutted outward with five glistening talons, and a huge wolf's head baring two rows of razor sharp fangs upon the two half-bloods.

"What is that?" Reyna gasped, stumbling backward to Nico's side.

Nico stared up into the eyes of the huge beast. He knew who this demon was. "Lycaon..." Nico growled. "Former King of Arcadia."

The wolf man snarled, the muscles rippling in his arms, as if the recalling of his former rank seeped through his veins like poison.

Nico knew there was no chance of outrunning this creature. Their only chance was speed and skill. He looked at Reyna. "When I give word, grab my hand. I'll get us back to the statue. Right now, we need to slow this thing down."

Lycaon roared, the trees bending over so low, their leaves touched the forest floor. Nico held his ground, his eyes locked on the beast. "Stand ready," he told Reyna. Raising his sword into the air, he felt a familiar pull at his gut, the earth below responding to his will, the bones of thousands of souls grasping at the earth's surface. Cracks broke through the ground at his feet. Skeletal hands clawed the air, as the dead clambered up into the world of the living. Scores of them emerged, filling up the clearing as well as a quarter mile section of the forest on both sides.

Lycaon hissed, backing up, uncertainty reflected in his actions.

The line of undead warriors held their positions, not daring to breath. Their teeth clattered, their bones creaking each time one moved.

Silence engulfed the forest for a few moments. Then Lycaon grew impatient. He bellowed, and charged the front line, claws bristling, eyes flaming. The ground shook beneath his weight.

"Attack!" Nico croaked.

As one, his skeletal army charged the beast, many jabbing bristling spear heads at their enemy's legs, others racing in from the sides, swinging roman Calvary swords, shields locked in formation.

"Nectar," Nico gasped.

Reyna ran to his side, uncorking a small bottle of the godly drink.

Nico took a small sip, and a good amount of his energy came flooding back into his limbs. But he still felt he might pass out any second if he didn't act now. "Take my hand!" he cried.

Reyna linked her fingers with his.

Nico took a last look at the battle raging before him. Lycaon bellowed in rage as he crushed dozens of skeletal warriors underfoot, while many more leaped onto his back trying to get a weighted net over him, others slashing their swords at his legs. "Keep fighting!" Nico called, hoping his voice swathed their ears (wait... what ears?). "Stand strong!" And with that, he grasped Reyna's hand tightly, and closed his eyes, imagining the place where the Athena Parthenos stood. He felt both their forms beginning to blend into shadow. The sounds of battle dimmed, Nico felt archs of electricity race up his spine, and suddenly, they weren't there anymore.

Nico opened his eyes. They stood in the shelter of a large clearing, their surroundings quiet and peaceful, not a hellhound, or werewolf in sight.

Coach Hedge lay curled in a ball at the base of the Athena Parthenos, chewing happily on one of Reyna's daggers as he slept on, his head using his baseball bat as a pillow. The dust piles that Nico assumed were the defeated essences of the hellhounds were seen scattered all throughout the clearing.

Reyna let go of his hand.

Nico stumbled forward a few feet, then turned back to look at her.

She stared back, her eyes wide and unblinking.

Nico gave her an exhausted grin, his muscles dead from shadow-traveling and summoning the dead. "Well... that was fun..." And he passed out.

 **So that's chapter one! What did you all think? Like I said, I'd love some creative advice for this, so by all means, don't be a silent reader! Review, follow, fav, and all that stuff!**

 **Thank you!**


	2. Chapter 2 - Percy

**Chapter 2 - Percy**

Percy awoke in a pitch black room, his forehead moist, his skin clammy. In a sudden surge of panic, he thought he was back in Tartarus, enclosed within great cavern walls, the surface of the Earth miles from his grasp, the terror of the pit awaiting beyond every corner. He sat up straight, his hand instinctively going to Riptide that sat just next to him, and he let the pen elongate into the shimmering bronze weapon he always knew, and so deeply trusted. Its dim yellowish glow was enough to illuminate the contents of his cabin room; his clothes askew, his closets ajar, personal belongings spilling forth, and the small mirror that hung lopsidedly on his bedroom door, reflecting Percy's frightened face within the dark of his bedroom.

He let out an exasperated sigh, falling back into the covers of his bed, letting his right arm drape over his face in a very, distressed-damsel-that-just-fainted-in-horror kind of way. He allowed his shallow breathing to slow down to a relaxed manner, and calm his racing heart. Sheathing Riptide, he lay still for a few minutes, throwing the covers off his overheated body, and letting himself cool down, remembering his vivid nightmare just a few moments earlier. He and his girlfriend, Annabeth, were just upon reaching the Doors of Death when Tartarus appeared over the rise, his great black form wreathed in shadows, his being made entirely out of tortured souls trying in vain to escape their prison that were his very robes. He opened his gaping mouth, and Percy and Annebeth were sucked into the dark void like dead leaves, unable to do anything to save themselves, and knowing death was upon them.

Wincing, Percy slowly sat back up again, and slipped on a clean grey T-shirt, and blue jeans. He needed some air. Checking the time, his clock read 6:03 A.M. What the heck. It was nearly morning anyways. He crossed out of his cabin room, and walked down the hall to the stairs that lead to the upper deck. He always felt refreshed when breathing in the smell of the sea. It calmed him, relinquishing any remnants of his nightmares he so often got.

He felt a small lump appear in his pocket, and he smiled to himself. He needn't bother taking Riptide with him. It just followed him wherever he went. Taking the stairs two at a time, he walked out onto the deck to find someone already there.

It was Jason, not seeming to notice Percy's footsteps creaking on the deck boards.

Percy turned towards the light of the moon, looking up at the sky. It was still dark, but the stars were beginning to disappear, a faint ray of thin blue light appearing over the horizon to the east. Dawn was slowly approaching.

Turning back, Percy approached Jason who stood facing the ocean before him, his arms leaning on the safety rail. "Jason," Percy said in greeting, resting his arms on the rail as well.

Jason turned his head, half-way. "Morning Percy," he said quietly. "How're you feeling?"

"I'm alright, I suppose," Percy answered. "Tired of the nightmares is all really."

Jason nodded in understanding. "Biggest issue of being a demigod. You got to deal with the dreams."

Percy cocked his head, shooing aside Jason's mildly amusing remark. "Something wrong? You seem troubled."

Jason turned back to the ocean. "You could say that. If it were anyone else, I'd have just said it was a bad dream like you."

Percy raised an eyebrow. "Even Piper?"

Jason nodded. "Yeah, even her. I don't like it when she worries."

"So why tell me it's something other than a dream that's bothering you?"

Jason was silent for a few moments. "Good question; considering our dads like to butt heads most of the time, and you and I are complete opposites, being air and sea..." he paused for a short moment, before continuing. "...but it seems that's the biggest reason why I trust you enough to say what's on my mind."

Percy let that sink in. Being the opposite of someone, meant they trusted you with their most secret troubles. Yeah, that resolved everything. Percy let it slide. "So, what's wrong?" he finally asked.

Jason's glanced up at the sky for a moment, sighed, then casually slipped his hand into his pocket, drawing forth his gold coin. He gave it a single flip, revealing his Imperial Gold lance.

Percy looked up. A lone harpy was fluttering through the sky, fixing beady red eyes upon the Argo II striding calmly across the waters below. It squawked in hatred, and made a beeline straight for the two demigods resting at its port, talons aimed for them.

Jason gave his weapon a single lazy flick, and a rogue bolt of lighting arched down from the sky, blasting the harpy to smithereens, dozens of charred feathers raining around them like confetti.

The boys didn't even react. Jason put up his spear. "Well, besides the endless monster attacks, it's just been nagging me at the corners of my mind... of what happened when were entered the mortal domain that sheltered the Doors of Death, just before we found you and Annabeth."

Percy shuddered, remembering the sudden lack of life that seemed to dwell around him when the elevator dinged, how he and Annabeth slumped against each other as if the car had been suddenly filled with poison gas, how he vaguely remembered hearing another faint ding, the doors hissing open, and he and Annbeth falling to the floor, something metallic rolling next to Percy's head. Had it been a screw driver? He couldn't remember.

Jason began, "Just after Leo and Hazel were separated from the rest of us, I couldn't control the Roman legions of the dead, no matter how hard I tried. They would only listen to Frank, before and after I turned over my mark as Praetor. I didn't understand it then, but I do now. My short time at Camp Half-Blood has changed me. It's turned me Greek. Even though I've spent all my life at Camp Jupiter, taking control as Praetor and ruling beside Reyna, my short arrival at your camp was enough that I couldn't even control my own legion. And I'm not saying anything offensive toward Camp Half-Blood. I just don't want this to end thinking I've become something I'm not. I've always been proud to be known as a son of Jupiter, not Zeus."

Percy listened quietly, his hand stroking the railing of the ship.

Jason continued, "I've always been acknowledged as Roman demigod, and being unable to control the Roman legion, almost makes me feel as if I've come to a cross-roads. I don't know where to turn, which side I should choose, which allies I join arms with. The Romans are marching to destroy Camp Half-Blood. Do I join them, or fight them? They're my friends, but then so are you, and everyone else at Camp Half-Blood. They've shown me their kindness, and they treated me as one of them; how could I face them, if I sided with the Romans? How could I face the Romans, if I sided with the Greeks?"

Percy held out his hand in a calming gesture, even though Jason's words were masked with tranquility. "Jason, I totally get you, man. I know exactly how you feel. Being dropped at Camp Jupiter, I've learned how to trust the ones I may have once called enemies. But I wouldn't worry about whose side I'll take when the end comes, because there won't even be a need. A big part of this entire quest we're on, was to lay peace between the two camps, not encourage it. That was the whole point of retrieving the Athena Parthenos, remember?"

Jason gave a single nod, his eyes still looking out into the horizon.

"There won't ever be a need to choose a side, because when we come back on this mission, there won't be a side to take. I have full faith in Reyna and Nico - not so much Coach Hedge - to bring back the statue and restore peace between the camps. They do their own quest as we do ours. And right now, we can't focus on the little things such as what line of blood we follow; and focus more on kicking Gaea in the face, and sending those filthy giants back to Tartarus again."

Jason turned to look at him, ice-blue eyes meeting sea-green. Percy held his eyes, not backing down.

Jason stood still for a moment, then breathed outward, giving a single nod. He held out his hand in gratitude, and Percy clasped it.

"Thanks Percy," Jason said.

"Don't mention it," Percy replied, a mischievous twinkle glowing in his eyes. He clapped Jason on the shoulder kiddingly. "Come on man, suck it up. We got everyone back. We're all safe. Let's enjoy the morning while we can before another shrimpzilla pays us a visit, or something."

Jason let out a huff of amused air, turning back to the sea. "Whatever you say, dude. If only this ship were in the air though. That might clear up my thoughts."

"Hades no," Percy remarked. "The ocean's the best."

"Says you!" Jason scoffed, a grin curling at the corners of his lips.

"Alright then, you go fly around like the blond Superman you are; take in the fresh air."

Jason nodded like that sounded like a good idea to him.

Percy said, "But only after I enjoy this comfortable, relaxing spot to watch you take a dive." And with that, Percy grabbed Jason and shoved him over the railing.

The son of Jupiter plummeted towards the water below, only to catch himself at the last second, summoning the winds, and taking to the sky, hovering in mid-air just before Percy, who stood laughing on the port deck of the Argo II.

"You think that's funny?" Jason smirked, grinning broadly now. "Well, do you think this is funny?" He suddenly pointed at Percy's feet, and a small funnel cloud materialized around Percy. Jason swung his arm upward, and the son of Poseidon was launched sky-high, the winds at his back. For about five seconds, Percy sailed through the air (sure for a second that Zeus was going to blast him to pieces), before landing with an almighty splash about a hundreds yards off the starboard deck of the Argo II.

Jason hovered in mid-air, laughing his head off.

Percy summoned a hurricane within the ripples of the ocean's surface, and a small wave lifted him up high, until he hovered directly in front of Jason. "Alright, son of Jupiter." Percy grinned. "It's on."

 **So, what'd everyone think of that chapter?! Thank you to Dorian Havilliard for giving me my first ever review on this site! I appreciate your support! Remember all you readers (if anyone's reading this) to give this a review, fav, follow, everything!**

 **Thanks everyone!**


	3. Chapter 3 - Piper

**Chapter 3 - Piper**

A colossal force collided with the ship, throwing Piper out of bed, rolling into the side of her nightstand. Katoptris went skittering off the side of the shelf, sliding along the floor, _almost_ disappearing under her dresser, but not before Piper grabbed it. Getting unsteadily to her feet, she was nearly thrown forward into her wall as something slammed the Argo II from behind, rocking the vessel back and forth.

Monsters? Piper was sure of it. But she couldn't hear the usual creaking of Festus from above, or the sound of the alarm bells going off. She looked into Katoptris, hoping in vain it would show her what was going on above deck. The blade shimmered once, then the bronze metal melted away displaying an image of the Argo II. Piper exhaled. Usually the knife only showed her the future, not the present. But she couldn't complain. She expected to see some deranged sea monster attacking the ship, or a swarm of Telchines bursting from the waters. What she saw made her stare at the blade in utter shock.

Two half-bloods were flying around, one propelled by the force of the water, the other riding the winds. Percy and Jason, fighting...?

As Piper watched, Jason sent a small wind storm at Percy, but Percy morphed a small watery shield directly in front of him, protecting him from the strike, deflecting the tiny squall, sending it spiraling into the hull of the Argo II. Just as Piper watched it careen into the ship's side, a great force sent Piper flying off her heels. Fortunately, she landed on her bed, but it was still enough to make her stomach twist itself into knots. Now she knew what it felt like to be Hazel.

As if on cue, she heard the unmistakable noise of someone throwing up in the room next to her.

Poor Hazel.

Piper threw open her cabin door, and the first thing she saw was Leo stumbling around the hallway spluttering, "Ship... attack... monsters... I hate WATER!" his hands kept trying to ignite, but a jet of ocean spray came shooting down the hallway from the upper deck. Piper ducked back into the safety of her bedroom, just as she heard an outraged chocking noise coming from Leo, followed by the sound of a body crashing into the opposite wall.

Piper came back out of her cabin room to find Leo at the end of the hallway, his butt plastered to the wall, his feet sticking up in the air, his doused hands smoking. The doorway opposite of her flew open, and Annabeth rushed out, her hand clutching her ivory sword, her gray eyes darting about. "Who's attacking us?" she demanded.

"It's not monsters," Piper assured her, showing her Katoptris. Annabeth looked at the knife for a second, then her shoulders relaxed, and she shook her head in disbelief. "I am going to kill him..."

Piper followed her, and the two girls came above deck just as Jason streaked by, riding the winds, Percy right on his heels. Percy leaped off his personal tsunami, sailed through the air for a second over Piper and Annabeth, clearing the entire bulk of the Argo II, then summoned another tidal wave on the other side landing on its mass like an acrobat as he pursued Jason around the hull as if he were some sort of Aqua Spiderman.

"Are they fighting?" Piper gasped, thinking back to their visit in Kansas when the Eidolons possessed Percy and Jason turning them upon each other. Then she saw the grin on Jason's face, and she could hear Percy laughing above the howling of the wind.

"Hades, they're behaving like _children_!" Annabeth spat. She dropped her sword and marched to the end of the deck. "Perseus Jackson, Jason Grace, you two get down here _right this instant_!"

Piper had to suppress a laugh. When Annabeth got angry, you did not want to cross her, but seeing her behave like a scolding mother...

Piper joined her at the railing. The boys weren't listening, continuing their aerial war games as if they had all the time in the world. Hazel came stumbling onto the deck, her face greener than Guacamole. Frank and Leo followed, Leo dripping wet, his black curls stuck to his forehead.

"Let's shake things up," Piper said. She waited until the boys were directly overhead. As they made another pass over the ship, Percy lobbing waterballs at Jason, and Jason deflecting them with the wind, Piper shouted, "Jason, look out! There's a sea monster beneath you!" She poured a great amount of charmspeak into her words, and this caused her momentary distraction.

"Huh?" Jason looked down, and Percy got in a lucky shot, hurling his waterball into Jason's back, sending the son of Jupiter spiraling into the water. Percy raised his arms triumphantly, but only before Piper then called out, "Percy, your pants fell down!"

"What?!" Percy fumbled at the back of his jeans, and lost his mental grip on his personal tsunami. It crashed into the Argo II, sea water spraying over the deck and soaking everyone from head to toe, and sending Percy Jackson flipping head over heels straight in the sail's netting above. He got tangled in the webbing of the ropes, and hung suspended above the deck, his eyes rolling into his head. "Ugghh..." he muttered.

Jason shot out of the water, landing on the deck, walking lopsidedly across the boards as he was completely drenched from head to toe, his clothes heavy with sea water. "Un-called for..." he muttered at Piper.

"Are you kidding me?" Piper retorted, punching Jason in the arm. "You nearly gave us all a heart attack! We thought we were being attacked! Plus, no one likes to be woken up by being thrown into the side of her wall."

Jason winced, a sheepish grin curling at his mouth. "Yeah, about that..." he looked up at where Percy dangled from the ship's netting. He pointed in dramatic accusation. "It was Percy's fault!"

"Say what?!" Percy spluttered. "Hold up there, Grace–" he fumbled with the knots in the rope for a second, yanking them apart, then suddenly realized his stupid mistake. The son of Poseidon dropped from the mast, plummeting towards the deck.

Annabeth sighed in exasperation. She glanced at Jason. "I know you two were just locked in a 'ferocious battle' a second ago, but would you mind saving him for me?"

Jason pointed at the deck just below Percy's descent. A tiny pocket of air materialized on the deck, catching Percy just before he ended up as a grease spot on the ground, and deposited him in a crumpled heap right at Annabeth's feet.

Annabeth slowly bent over, hands on her hips as she glared down at Percy.

Percy looked up, a guilty smile spreading across his face. "Uh... hey, there Annabeth. Sleep well?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes, glaring up at the sky as if thinking, _how in the name of Zeus did I fall for this guy?_

Bending down, she pinched Percy's ear, slowly hauling him to his feet. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow..." Percy muttered as he slowly rose.

"Now dry us off," Annabeth ordered, letting go of his ear, her eyes softening, a hint of amusement beginning to show itself within her features.

Percy shook himself, cursing as he batted at his ear, as if thinking he'd be able to brush off the stinging pain by swiping at it.

Boys...

"Whatever you say, your highness," he grumbled, touching Annabeth's shoulder lightly, instantly drying her from head to toe, her clothes lightening, her dripping hair regaining its long golden curls.

Going from demigod to demigod, Percy dried them off one by one. "I was only trying give Jason some encouragement," he said as he dried Frank.

"By fighting him...?" Piper said, folding her arms.

Percy paused to look at her. "Yes, exactly like that, beauty queen," he said sarcastically, then walked over and touched her shoulder, relieving the water from her clothes. "No, _before_ he and I started... 'fighting'." He made quotation marks with his fingers as he said the word, fighting.

"I just had a lot on my mind is all," Jason confessed as Percy touched his shoulder, drying him off. "I needed some air and apparently, so did Percy. We had a brief conversation, and then we just suddenly decided to start ruff-housing." He glared kiddingly at Percy as he walked over to Hazel. "Or you did, actually."

Percy snorted as he dried Hazel. "I was only trying to refresh you! You seemed to need a shower anyway. You're the one who launched me into the air like a missile."

"Aye, touché," Jason remarked.

Percy dried Leo last. "Anyway, I'm sorry if we kinda... sorta caused an uproar..."

"' _Kinda_ '?" Annabeth demanded.

"' _Sorta_ '?" Piper snapped.

Percy held up his hands in surrender. "Okay! Okay! ' _Really_ ' caused an uproar. We're sorry; alright?"

"Hephaestus's beard, no!" Leo snapped. "You nearly destroyed my ship! Festus just reported some minor cracks in the lower decks, and now water's leaking in!"

"That's what you call a problem, Leo?" Percy asked, raising an eye brow.

"And some of the oars snapped when one of your waterballs pushed the ship against a small reef!"

"Easily replaceable," Percy said.

" _And_ , I need to fix the now frayed mast netting, _you of course_ managed to destroy!"

"I think you are overreacting, Captain Valdez."

"Bah!" Leo hurled a bolt of flames at Percy and set his pants on fire.

With a strangled yelp, Percy jumped overboard, plunging into the sea, dousing the flames, but not before making a total fool of himself in front of the entire crew. When he surfaced, he looked up and saw everyone laughing on board.

Piper was holding back tears. "Alright, _that_ was pretty good payback! Nice work, Leo."

Leo twirled his hand gracefully, giving a 360 degree bow, tipping off an imaginary top hat.

"Now we just need to figure something out for Grace, over here." Piper turned, giving Jason a wicked grin.

Jason paled. "Oh Hades, no..." He backed up. The remaining five demigods turned towards him, malicious smiles showing on their faces.

"Run Jason!" Percy called from where he floated in the water.

"See ya'!" Jason took to the sky.

"I'll get him!" Frank turned into a giant eagle and streaked after him in pursuit, the other half-bloods urging him on.

Percy leaped back onto the deck, laughing alongside the others as they watched Frank chase Jason through the air. "Holy Zeus, what is it with everyone and Pick on Jason Day?!" Jason cried as he swooped over their heads, Frank hot on his tail.

For a moment, everything was peaceful. The sun was shining above. No monsters had attacked them for quite some time now, and for once Piper felt a surge of happiness as she stood alongside her friends, enjoying a quiet morning out at sea. But the feeling was gone as soon as it came.

Festus started whirring and creaking, alerting Leo to the controls.

The demigods fell silent as Leo ran to the helm, Jason and Frank still chasing each other, but entirely forgotten.

"What is it, Leo?" Annabeth called. "Monsters?"

Leo stopped at the controls, his hands flying over the panels and buttons, his eyes scanning the radar. "No," he said, finally looking up. "Much worse."

Jason and Frank landed on the deck, apparently noticing something was wrong.

Leo swallowed. "A Titan is approaching us."

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